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Stealth bomber in flight on Google Maps

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Re: Stealth bomber in flight on Google Maps

#191

Post by msisk6 »

ccozan wrote: post #178
akie wrote: post #135

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Seems like you're right - there's one parked on (indeed) Whiteman Air Force Base right here https://goo.gl/maps/x8738SicBvtSPqmR6

Omg, are they sooo huge? I just realised how big they are for the first time in my life. What a sight! [edit] 172ft = 52m wingspan!

They don't really seem that big in person. And they're amazingly hard to see from any distance since they're essentially just a thin flat airfoil.

Here's a not-especially-good video I just uploaded of one flying over my farm from this summer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GyXSuFj0naQ

Re: Stealth bomber in flight on Google Maps

#193

Post by Hogarth01 »

akie wrote: post #135
msisk6 wrote: post #45

I live on a farm very close to this area. All the B-2s are based at nearby Whiteman Air Force Base. They fly over often -- one even fly over my farm today about an hour ago. This one was probably on final approach during the summer when the winds are usually out of the south and was probably about 2,000 feet above the ground.

Seems like you're right - there's one parked on (indeed) Whiteman Air Force Base right here https://goo.gl/maps/x8738SicBvtSPqmR6

On Google Earth you can use the timeline feature to actually see when the imagery was captured (or at least uploaded?). The plane sitting near the hangers was from a capture in May 2016. Google Earth currently shows several newer captures, including one from September 2021. The current one from September 2021 is actually far more interesting in my opinion. In it, you can see a B2 sitting in a field about a quarter up the runway (38°43'27.63"N 93°32'54.86"W) with stuff scattered all around it and trucks sitting on the runway. https://i.imgur.com/lh1hkWN.png

Re: Stealth bomber in flight on Google Maps

#194

Post by mynameismonkey »

boomskats wrote: post #184
jldl805 wrote: post #177

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's 2021 (for another couple weeks) and everyone has access to imaging satellites with almost instant turnaround, for a negligible fee. Consider yourself corrected.

Have you considered including a source that supports your statement?

Not OP, and no idea on pricing, but https://www.spymesat.com/new-tasking.html appears to allow you task a satellite selfie on demand

Re: Stealth bomber in flight on Google Maps

#195

Post by tgsovlerkhgsel »

capableweb wrote: post #164
renzo88 wrote: post #156

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There's really no point. A few high sensitivity assets are lower resolution, but any state actor that wants very high resolution shots of military facilities already has it and on a quicker update cadence than google maps allows.

Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't think the biggest threat to domestic military facilities are foreign state actors but rather domestic terrorists, and those usually don't have access to any military-grade satellites.

Those generally avoid hardened targets like military bases.

Re: Stealth bomber in flight on Google Maps

#196

Post by mc32 »

_the_inflator wrote: post #132
msisk6 wrote: post #45

I live on a farm very close to this area. All the B-2s are based at nearby Whiteman Air Force Base. They fly over often -- one even fly over my farm today about an hour ago. This one was probably on final approach during the summer when the winds are usually out of the south and was probably about 2,000 feet above the ground.

Yes, nice comment. I remember being part of the staff of NATO's only MIG squadron during military service. People considered a MIG within NATO a sensation, while I was simply bored. I saw them every day in droves. ;)

Apparently prior to getting their hands on a MiG-25 from a defector who took one to Japan, many in the western military and intelligence communities envisioned it to have super avionic powers (that persisted for a long time in the civilian sphere). They thought it was agile and fast. What they didn't know is that it could only sustain those speeds for short spurts (else the engines suffered from metal fatigue due to temperature) and the maneuverability they envisioned from the geometry proved to be false (it had a very wide turning radius)...

Re: Stealth bomber in flight on Google Maps

#197

Post by Phrodo_00 »

robocat wrote: post #127
Jiocus wrote: post #70

Artist James Bridle calls them "Rainbow planes" and has used this in his art. Rainbow Plane 002: Kiev. October 29, 2014: https://booktwo.org/notebook/rainbow-plane-002-kiev/ Rainbow Planes: https://www.flickr.com/photos/stml/sets/72157637938061015/

“Rather than taking a photograph, satellite sensors record electromagnetic radiation in the red, blue, green, and high-resolution panchromatic (black-and-white) bands (as well as several not visible to the human eye, as this Mapbox[2] post helpfully explains). When these bands are combined to produce a visible image, fast-moving objects – like planes in flight – don’t quite match up, producing the rainbow effect. [2]…

> Rather than taking a photograph, satellite sensors record electromagnetic radiation in the red, blue, green, and high-resolution panchromatic (black-and-white) bands (as well as several not visible to the human eye, as this Mapbox[2] post helpfully explains). When these bands are combined to produce a visible image

That's the same as taking a (normal, digital) photograph (sans additional non-rgb layers), just explained.

Re: Stealth bomber in flight on Google Maps

#198

Post by 01100011 »

ccozan wrote: post #178
akie wrote: post #135

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Seems like you're right - there's one parked on (indeed) Whiteman Air Force Base right here https://goo.gl/maps/x8738SicBvtSPqmR6

Omg, are they sooo huge? I just realised how big they are for the first time in my life. What a sight! [edit] 172ft = 52m wingspan!

I was blessed by a low flyover in Lancaster, CA back in '94 or so. It's absolutely stunning to have something that big and that quiet glide over you.

Re: Stealth bomber in flight on Google Maps

#199

Post by fullstop »

willis936 wrote: post #113
ericbarrett wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My napkin calculations are that the three channels are ~10ms apart, given the bomber is 69 feet nose-to-tail* and an assumption of 400 mph velocity. * http://www.dept.aoe.vt.edu/~mason/Mason_f/B2Spr09.pdf

The google maps scale shows the plane as being pretty close to that length as well. I think the satellite is high enough up that altitude scaling for aircraft is going to be minimal. I see about a 10 foot separation between colors. Velocity = distance / time 400 mph is 587 fps. 10 / 587 = 17 ms

Do they actually use satellites for their "satellite" view? I always assumed that it was done by aircraft.

Re: Stealth bomber in flight on Google Maps

#200

Post by t0mas88 »

chrissnell wrote: post #121
jcims wrote: post #79

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It actually works out to be pretty close. A satellite flying ~17k mph at 250 miles altitude would largely have the same angular displacement from the ground as a plane moving 400 mph at 31,000 feet. Most satellites fly in an easterly direction, so the question would ultimately be what the inclination of the orbit is relative to the direction of flight.

I think this plane is flying much lower and slower. The B2s are based at Whiteman AFB, which is about 25 miles south of this photograph. The prevailing winds in this part of the country are from the south, so I suspect that it is about to turn onto the final leg of its approach for a landing to the south. I’d guess that it’s no more than 8-10K’ and traveling at a 2-300 knots max.

Definitely. Rule of thumb in a jet is to slow down if you're closer than 3x the altitude. So at 8k feet you want to be at least 24 nautical miles (27 normal miles) away or if closer you want to be slowing down (or descending). If you don't slow down before you're going to have to do so in the descend and typical jets can't really slow down much in that.
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